KT exclusive: How eye in the sky keeps Dubai safe

First Lieutenant Abdulla Al Falasi. Photo: M. Sajjad

Dubai - Police and search and rescue missions are the key tasks for the Air Wing

By Hesham Saleh

Published: Thu 7 Jan 2021, 3:38 PM

Last updated: Fri 8 Jan 2021, 10:24 AM

In Dubai, if you need help — whether you’re in the middle of the desert or far from the coast — trust that the police would be there for you in no time. The Dubai Police’s Air Wing is always ready to save the day.

You may not see their choppers on a daily basis but when you do, it means they are on a mission. The Air Wing of the Dubai Police has been keeping the emirate safe from the sky since 1978. Walking Khaleej Times through their operations, Lt-Col Matar Al Shaer, head of the wing’s safety department, said they embark on hundreds of missions a year, the most common of which are police and search and rescue missions.

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“In 2020, however, the numbers had significantly decreased because of the pandemic,” said Al Shaer, who is also an instructor pilot. Data showed that 523 missions were carried out last year, which included 150, 21 and 80 training, search and police missions, respectively. They also recorded 254 air patrols and 18 missions were carried out to bring injured people to hospitals.

Under their police missions, the Air Wing would usually fly across the city to live-stream the traffic situation in real time to the Dubai Police’s general headquarters in Al Twar-1.

Search and rescue missions are crucial, they said, because lives are at stake. Pilots would have to race against the clock to fly anyone hurt or in a critical condition to the nearest hospital. Sometimes, the urgent task is to scour a remote area or survey the open sea to find a person in distress.

For First Lieutenant Abdulla Al Falasi, head of administration of the Air Wing at the Dubai Police, saving lives in the service of the nation is not only a duty but a dream come true.

Al Falasi had graduated from an air school in Melbourne, Australia, in 2012 and joined the Air Wing when he came back. He;s now flying various choppers, including the Italian helicopter AgustaWestland (AW-109 and AW-139) and Agusta-Bell 412. “I keep learning new skills and getting better on the job,” he said.

At present, the Air Wing has 17 pilots, including a woman, Al Falasi said. The department is likely to induct two more female pilots soon.

hesham@khaleejtimes.com